HTTYD: The Next Generation
by Amberly Nightengale
Summary: Zephyr threw her leg over Brightwing's body and stared out over the sea. The sun sparkled on the waves, the clouds soft and warm. It was beautiful from here, and even more beautiful from the sky. Zephyr soaked it in, letting her spirit free like the dragon it was. "Let's go." She and Brightwing took off into the sky, like dragon riders of old. SPOILER: Don't read w/o seeing HTTYD3!
1. Chapter 1

Chapter 1

The small boat rocked gently from side to side, a soft rhythm to lull an infant to sleep with. The sea was calm that day; only the movement of its passengers fueled the motion of the vessel.

A small girl with soft auburn hair bounced on the balls of her feet on the deck, her eyes wild with energy that didn't quite seem to match the calm of the sea. She had good reason to be unable to contain her eager spirit; she was on her way to encounter something that very few would ever have the opportunity to see.

The mother noticed her daughter's restlessness and smiled, remembering the way she herself had been as a child. "Zeph," she called, her eyes twinkling as the girl perked up at the sound of her name. "Come here. I have something to show you."

The daughter obediently stood and crossed the deck to her mother, her balance impeccable. The mother smiled proudly. There could be no doubt in the minds of any who saw her that this girl was indeed her daughter.

"Take this," the mother said, placing a rope into the child's small hands. "Pull it so the sail comes out."

The girl was quick to comply. However, her small arms had only been in use for eight years, and hardly had the strength to follow their instructions alone. The mother took hold of the upper rigging and pulled, helping the girl with her task.

The daughter smiled her thanks, then turned her attention to the front of the small ship, where a tall, handsome man somewhere in his late twenties held up a small boy with hair the color of the sun to peer over the edge across the waves. The man murmured softly to the boy, saying things the girl's little ears couldn't quite make out. "What's Daddy saying?" she asked her mother curiously.

The mother glanced in the pair's direction and listened for a moment. Then she smiled. "He's telling a story you've heard many times. The one about the dragons."

The little girl's eyes brightened. She loved hearing about the brave hero who had tamed and befriended many dragons, even saved them from almost certain destruction multiple times.

The mother knew what her daughter wanted. "It's your brother's first time hearing it," she explained. "We'd better not interrupt."

The girl nodded, understanding, and turned back to the rigging. Just then, a great wind blew up, and would have pulled the ropes from her grasp if her mother hadn't been holding them tight from above. The two laughed, and the father and son, who had turned to watch them, joined in.

Suddenly, a loud shriek broke through the once-still air, startling the girl into releasing the ropes. The father and mother shared a knowing glance that the girl understood at once. They had arrived.

The girl rushed up to the prow of the boat and stared eagerly into the mist. But the wind threw strands of her hair into her face, and the fog was so thick, so she could see nothing.

But it appeared that the father could. He set the boy next to his mother and joined the girl at the prow. He swept his daughter up into his arms, placed her with the boy and their mother, and returned to the prow looking more eager than the girl had ever seen him. But she was thinking of something else. Just before her father had ushered her to her mother's side, she had just been able to glimpse a huge, winged, shadowy figure on the rocks.

Another shriek, and the father stepped back, letting the figure land on the front of the boat. The girl gasped in a mixture of fear, delight, and awe.

It was the most powerful creature either of the children had ever seen. Its tough, strong skin was covered in shining black scales. Its claws were curled and sharp. Its teeth were bared, and it glared with slit pupils in its green eyes.

The dragon eyed the father angrily, a low growl rumbling in its throat.

The boy immediately buried his face in his mother's chest, but the girl was simply confused. Why was the dragon angry? Weren't dragons supposed to be nice?

Then the girl saw the dragon's protective stance, and what it was defending. It was four other dragons, two white and two black. The two black ones and one of the white were much smaller than the one on the ship.

Panic filled the girl's chest. They had encroached on the dragon's territory! It thought they were going to hurt its babies! And the girl's father was the target of the dragon's anger! She drew closer to her mother, praying silently and fervently to every god she knew of for her father's safety.

But the father didn't seem at all afraid, only concerned. But under that thin layer of worry was immense joy, threatening to burst out of his chest and drown them all in happiness.

But first, the dragon. The father surprised the children by not running. Rather, he held his hand out to the dragon and spoke to it in a soft voice. "Hey, bud," he whispered. "It's been a while." He reached out to place his hand on the dragon's snout, but a harsh, warning growl ripped through the creature's chest, and the father pulled back.

"It's okay, it's okay," he said hastily. "It's me, bud. Remember me?" Once again, he reached out, keeping his eyes pointed downward. The dragon still looked wary, but it allowed the father to place his hand on its snout. It gave the father's hand a careful sniff, then recognition filled its eyes. It let out a joyful moan and pounced on the father.

The girl gasped, and the boy, who had started to peek out from behind his hands, buried his face again and let out a fearful sob. The mother pulled both children closer to her, though she laughed a little as she did so.

The girl felt a bit like laughing, too, as she watched her father and the dragon wrestle across the deck, both obviously enjoying themselves more than they seemed to have done in a very long time. They rolled around the boat, batting playfully at each other.

The mother carefully drew her son out from his hiding place and showed him the scene. "It's okay," she chuckled. "The dragon is not going to eat your father."

The small battle finally ended when the dragon, having pinned the father's legs beneath its own massive ones, began licking its temporary prisoner, soaking him from head to toe. The father began squirming to avoid the huge pink tongue. "Toothless!" he protested. He managed to free himself and shook as much of the dragon saliva off his clothes as he could. "You _know_ that doesn't wash out!" But his chuckle assured that no hard feelings were held.

Despite how nervous the girl was, she giggled a little. The sound seemed to remind the father of her and her brother's presence. He placed one hand back on the dragon's snout and held the other out to his children. "Come on."

The girl froze. She had always dreamed of petting a dragon, but now that she actually had the opportunity, she didn't feel quite as sure as before.

But the father never withdrew his hand. He smiled encouragingly at the two shocked children. "It's okay," he said. "He won't hurt you."

The girl was still unsure, but with a gentle push from her mother, she stepped forward, her brother nervously trailing behind.

The father took the hands of his two children and gently eased them closer to the dragon. "Just do what I'm doing," he said softly. "Put your hands here, like me. That's it." He guided the children's small hands toward the place where his own rested. Both started at how close their hands were to the great creature, but did not dare move them. The dragon sniffed, then after a moment, pressed his large nose to their miniature palms. The girl jumped, but upon realizing what she had accomplished, breathed a soft laugh of relief and awe. The boy simply gaped at his hand, stunned and fascinated.

Seeing that the girl was clearly pleased, the dragon turned his body, careful not to move its head and disturb the boy, its eyes visibly portraying an offer.

The father placed a gentle hand on the girl's shoulder. "He wants to know if you want to ride him."

The girl looked up at her father, amazed. But the opportunity was too tempting for her to resist. She grinned and nodded.

Only minutes later, she was clutching the long spines of a blue-scaled dragon, laughing as her mother steered them through the sky. Off to her left somewhere, her father, on the back of the black dragon, tossed her brother into the air so that he squealed with delight. The girl looked down to see their small ship, the size of the smallest pebble from up here. The girl knew she should probably feel afraid, but instead she felt… free. Like she could fly away and never worry about anything ever again.

"You feel that, Zeph?" her mother asked. Her eyes were shut, and her arms were spread to catch the wind that whipped her hair. Her face glowed with bliss. "This is what it is to be a dragon."

The girl looked ahead and tried to connect to her senses on a deeper level. She felt the wind coursing through her hair, saw the perfect blue of the sky. She closed her eyes and heard the perfect tranquility of the world above the clouds.

If this was what it was to be a dragon, she wished she had been born one.

The girl opened her eyes. Hadn't Vikings once been able to live like this? Why couldn't they now? She opened her mouth to ask her mother about this, but before she could, her mother's eyes flew open. "Oh, no, you don't," she muttered. She reached around the girl and gripped the blue dragon's spines, and the dragon shot off into the clouds like a spear from the hand of a god. The girl clutched her handholds and shouted with joy.

A moment later, the father and brother were in sight. The girl reached out for her father, and she climbed onto the back of the black dragon just as her brother took his place on that of the blue one.

The father gently took his daughter's hands and wrapped them around the short spines of the black dragon. "Hold on," he said. Then the dragon flew off with incredible speed.

The girl felt no fear. She knew, beyond a doubt, this was where she truly belonged.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

It had been seventeen years since Hiccup Horrendous Haddock III, son of Stoick the Vast, had tamed the dragons. It had been twelve years since he had saved the dragons from almost certain destruction and become chief of Berk. It had been eleven years since he released the dragons, never to return. That is, until the world was ready for them.

A ten-year-old girl stood on a cliff over the water, staring out at what might at first glance appear to be nothing, but she knew this was hardly the truth. Out there was the home of the dragons.

The girl knew this, because she was Zephyr Haddock, firstborn child of Hiccup himself. And she was one of only five people who saw the dragons anymore.

Of course, she hadn't lived to see the era of the dragons. She was born the year after it ended. But she got to have a small taste of what it was like, if only for her father seventeen years ago, before the changes.

"Brightwing," Zephyr hissed through her teeth. Nothing happened.

"Brightwing!" she repeated more firmly. "Come out here now!"

A throaty, not-human laugh came from the underside of the ledge. Zephyr frowned.

"Come on, Brightwing!" she said. "Dad will be back soon! Are we going or not?"

A white dragon head suddenly popped out from the underside of the cliff, startling Zephyr into stumbling back. "Don't _do_ that!" she reprimanded her as Brightwing laughed her dragonish laugh.

"Quit kidding around," said Zephyr. "Let's just go!"

Brightwing rolled her eyes, but she crawled out from underneath the ledge and stood there, waiting patiently for Zephyr to mount her.

Zephyr threw her leg over Brightwing's body and stared out over the sea. The sun sparkled on the waves, the clouds soft and warm. It was beautiful from here, and even more beautiful from the sky.

Zephyr soaked it in, letting her spirit fly free like the dragon it was. "Let's go."

She and Brightwing took off into the sky, like dragon riders of old.

Zephyr sneaked back into the chief's house and hour later. If her father caught her, she could get in big trouble.

"Hey, Zeph!" called a small blond figure from the end of the hall. "You're back!"

"Shh!" Zephyr hissed at him. "Not so loud, Fink!"

Zephyr's seven-year-old brother grinned. He was missing one of his front teeth. "Whoops. Sorry, Zeph."

Zephyr rolled her eyes. "Where's Dad?"

"Out doing chief stuff," Nuffink replied, chewing on his fingernails. "And Mom's prolly doing stuff about the baby."

Zephyr crossed to her brother and took his hand out of his mouth. "What about Grandma Valka? Where's she?"

Nuffink shrugged. "Who knows? Dad says she's a 'free spirit', whatever that means."

Zephyr giggled. "Well, I'm gonna be in my room. Remember to knock if you want to talk to me."

"Aww, don't go!" Nuffink whined. "It's _boring_ here without Mom or Dad around!"

Zephyr snickered. "Why don't you go visit Gobber? Maybe he can help you make an ax or something."

Her little brother's eyes lit up. "Yeah! Thanks, Zeph!" He ran out the door.

Zephyr rolled her eyes as she entered her room. Gobber would never let Nuffink make an ax, not in a million years. Not unless Fink was his actual apprentice. Which he wasn't.

But thoughts about her little brother and weaponry were soon chased out of Zephyr's mind. Then, as always, her mind turned to the dragons.

Thor's beard, how she wished she could fly around with Brightwing all the time, the way her father used to years ago! The days of dragon riding sounded like the greatest days there ever were!

But dragon riding was against the rules, the ones that had been made when Zephyr's father had fought dragon trappers one time too many. This way was safer for the dragons. If they stayed in the Hidden World, no one could hunt them down.

Zephyr loved Brightwing. She wanted her friend to be safe, but she was very much her father's daughter, and Brightwing was more of a friend to Zephyr than any human, except perhaps her little brother.

_Rules are rules for a reason,_ Zephyr reminded herself. This was the first lesson she had been taught as the future chieftess of Berk. _There are no rules without reason._

_Saving the dragons is the most important thing,_ Zephyr thought. _They can come back once everyone's ready._

But as Zephyr thought about it, she realized the dragons _weren't_ safe. Not all of them, anyway. The only dragons that had been taken to the Hidden World were the ones taken from Old Berk, all of which had come from the same two nests. There _had_ to be more nests out there.

And she would be the one to find and save them.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

"No."

"But why not?" Zephyr complained. "This is a serious problem!"

"And I'm not saying it's not," said Hiccup, "but I won't have you going out there and putting yourself in danger. You are the future chief, but more than that, you're my daughter. If anyone's going, it should be me."

"At this time?" said Astrid, smiling at her husband. "Berk _needs_ you, Hiccup. If someone has to go, maybe I-"

"Absolutely not," said Hiccup. "You're in no condition to-"

"I'm just as capable as I ever was!" Astrid replied fiercely.

"Hiccup's right," said Valka. In eleven years, she had acquired streaks of gray in her braid, which somehow made her look more regal and powerful. "It's not about you, Astrid, what about your children? And the baby, too. Going off on this flight now would only hurt him- or her," she added with a wink at Zephyr.

"Please, Daddy," Zephyr said. "I can go. I'll take Brightwing-"

"Out of the question," said Hiccup, shaking his head roughly. "We'll send Fishlegs or Snotlout-"

"Fishlegs has to teach the village kids." Astrid pointed out. "And Snotlout- well, you know Snotlout. You'll never be able to drag him away from those combat classes he's instructing."

"The twins aren't dependable, either," said Valka. "They'd only bicker and fight the entire time, and they'd never get anything done."

"We'll send someone else, then," said Hiccup. "_Anyone_ else. _You_, young lady," he said with a stern look at Zephyr, who had been just about to speak up, "are not going anywhere."

"But _why not_?" Zephyr demanded. "It's not like _you_ never did anything similar-"

"I wasn't ten years old," her father objected. "I was much older than-"

"What about Mom?" Zephyr said. "Mom said that she used to get involved in the raids when she was even younger than me. She was only seven! I'm not saying you should send Fink, am I?"

"That doesn't matter," Hiccup said. "Putting out fires is one thing. Taming a whole nest of dragons-"

"You would have done it," Zephyr said doggedly. "If Grandma hadn't been taken by a dragon when you were little, you would have tamed _your_ nest when you were my age."

Hiccup's spine stiffened. "That's not-"

"Let her go, son" said Valka, placing her hand on Zephyr's shoulder. "She's right. You _would_ have changed Berk sooner if I had come back. She is just like you, Hiccup. If you could change the world at such a young age, who's to say she can't?"

"Zeph isn't me, Mom," Hiccup said gently. "She's my daughter. I only want to keep her safe."

"And I only want to keep the dragons safe," said Zephyr. "Please, Dad, let me go. I'll come back in a year at most."

Hiccup closed his eyes, torn between protecting his daughter and letting her do what was best for her. Then he sighed. "You'll go with your grandmother."

"Yes!" Zephyr cheered.

"And no one can know about this," her father continued. "It has to be kept secret. We'll tell everyone you're going to Old Berk."

Zephyr threw her arms around him. "Thank you, Dad!" she said. "I promise I won't let you down!"

Astrid, hand protectively resting on her stomach over the child that grew there, smiled sadly after her as she ran out of the room. "They grow up so fast," she murmured.


End file.
